


Hobbies

by FireFaceOutlook



Series: MarcoAce Week, 2016 [2]
Category: One Piece
Genre: And some talking, Enjoy!, Just some flying
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-15
Updated: 2016-12-15
Packaged: 2018-09-08 16:42:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 926
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8852485
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FireFaceOutlook/pseuds/FireFaceOutlook
Summary: "Your wings are your arms, right?  Do they still feel like arms, or do they register as wings in your brain when you're like this?” Cue exasperated eye closing and sigh.





	

Ace was draped over a side railing, eyes locked on the writhing ocean and sea foam being churned below. The fire user was clearly bored and everyone on the Moby Dick knew that was a foreshadowing of mischief to come. No one wanted to deal with that on such a nice day, but no one wanted to go entertain the sometimes difficult to impress pirate. Eventually all of the Commanders voted for Marco to be the one to do something before it was too late. The Phoenix complained for a moment – he'd been snagged while he was going below deck to catch up on some sleep – but gave into the pleading of his brothers in the end, brushing them off with an exasperated sigh, briefly closing his eyes before heading over to where the “youngest” sat.

  


“Ace.”

Blinking himself out of the bored daze he'd sunken into, Ace looked up to see Marco leaning against the railing next to him. The blond gestured for Ace to stand and as he did, the recently appointed Second Division Commander wondered if he was in trouble for something again.

“I was going to go for a flight,” Marco explained once he had Ace's full attention. “I was wondering if you'd keep me company.”

Gunmetal grey eyes widened. Ace had seen Marco's phoenix form, of course, but he hadn't known that it was possible – or warranted – to fly with him. Marco's lips curved into a smile as he took the surprised silence as a 'yes'.

Cerulean blue flames enveloped Marco as he changed. It never hurt, switching between forms; when his bones rearranged, they did so within seconds. He heard a rumour on the sea, once, that the larger the creature one's Zoan fruit gave them control over, the slower and less comfortable the change. Marco's phoenix side was not all that much larger than he was compared to, say, an ancient reptilian Zoan form might be. Sure, he could make his phoenix form larger once he was fully shifted, but that was mostly “puffing up his feathers,” as Thatch so eloquently put it when explaining it to some newcomers before Ace, than actually growing larger.

Once his flames had settled and talons clicked against the deck instead of sandals, Marco lowered himself with practiced ease as a wordless invitation for Ace to climb onto his back. Out of the corner of his eye, Marco saw the other Commanders watching, some with smiles and others (*cough*Haruta*couch*) with envy.

“B-but I wanna go,” Haruta finally whined when Ace was properly seated and Marco rose, wings stretching out with a flicker of flames.

_“Sorry, Haruta,”_ Marco replied, amused when Ace jolted a little on his back. _“I can only carry one passenger at a time.”*_

That was actually a lie, as Marco had flown before with Haruta, Thatch, _and_ Izou before, but he considered it payback for Haruta not taking his side when he wanted to sleep instead of play around with Ace. Before anymore complaints could be voiced, Marco flapped his wings once, twice, and was in the air. Ace's fingers clutched tightly onto his feathers – they were all flames, but his downy feathers were more solid and feather-like than the rest – until they stopped ascending and were soaring over the ocean alongside a small flock of seagulls that cawed a greeting. As Ace relaxed, bit by bit, his grip loosened and Marco gave a playful bob that gave the freckled boy a reason to reclaim his stable hold again. A deep hum resonated in Marco's chest, his form of a laugh at the moment, and Ace seemed to realize that as he audibly huffed.

“Very funny.”

The duo flew for a majority of the day, sleep as far from Marco's mind as boredom was from Ace's. Ace asked the occasional question as they crossed the ocean, returning to fly over the Moby Dick every once in a while before arching out to the other side.

_(“Why are your feathers blue and yellow?”_

_“They're only blue. The sun reflecting on my fire makes it look yellow. Only my beak and tails* are gold.”)_

_(“Your wings are your arms, right? Do they still feel like arms, or do they register as wings in your brain when you're like this?”_

_Cue exasperated eye closing and sigh.)_

By the time they returned, the sun was setting and half of the Commanders had retired to bed to prepare for early departures to check on their Divisions, Haruta included. Izou and Thatch were sitting with Whitebeard as Marco dove towards the deck. Ace slid off, landing on his feet, while the flames burst and disappeared* as Marco landed in the same manner.

“Gurarara. Did you have fun?” Whitebeard asked as Ace jogged over, offering the Mera Mera no Mi user a hand up to his leg.

“It was amazing!” Ace exclaimed. “You can see forever from up there! The sunset was much nicer from up there than on the ship.”

As Ace continued to explain his flying experience, Marco wished them a goodnight, the earlier fatigue returning to him, but he had to admit, it felt good to stretch his wings like that. He didn't often get a chance to just fly around for hours at a time, not in the middle of a fight or heading out to his Division for work. It was also nice to spend time with the ever busy or trouble-causing Ace. He decided they would have to go out on another flight soon as he descended below deck.

**Author's Note:**

> **A/N: *Honestly? I don't know if Marco can speak in his phoenix form. Every time he's been in his phoenix form in the series so far, he's been fighting, and he hasn't said a word, so I assume that if he could, it would be something similar to telepathy, since phoenix are magical creatures and all. Got your own theories? Lay 'em on me!**
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> ****Also, what am I supposed to call those ringlet thingies? I'm pretty sure they're his tail(s), though, so I'm going with that.**
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> *****You remember that scene where he was facing Kizaru? The way he shifted from phoenix to winged human in a burst of flames? Yeah, that's what I was envisioning.**


End file.
